The great automobile companies have historically been in the Detroit area. There’s no good reason for that, seems to me. It’s cold up there. But the big company plants are there, along with scads of ancillary manufacturers, services, and the like. Detroit isn’t the Motor City for nothing. The area functioned as a magnet for all things related to automobiles.
It has been reported that five of the top ten sending churches for Southern Baptists are in the Raleigh/Durham/Wake Forest area. A comprehensive analysis of why wasn’t reported but it would be an easy guess that Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary is a magnet for those looking to serve overseas.
North Carolina Sending Culture Celebrated
The article noted that IMB leader Paul Chitwood was the source of this fact about sending churches. The five churches in the area are: Summit Church, North Wake Church, Imago Dei Church, Providence Baptist Church, and Open Door Church.
SEBTS is self-designated as a “Great Commission Seminary.” Their “Go” or “I am going…” publicity (I don’t know if it has an official name) is ubiquitous in Southern Baptist life. It seems to be a sending culture.
As an aside, make a note that only one of these churches retains “Baptist” as a part of their church name. Sign of our times, I suppose.
One might also presume that many of the individuals who count one of the five as their “sending” church arrived in the Raleigh Durham area to attend SEBTS came from smaller churches all over. That’s the way our cooperative, mission sending system works. We celebrate the whole of it.
Chitwood said that there are currently 3,660 active missionaries, and the IMB is preparing to send more, with a goal of adding 500 additional personnel by 2025. I understand him to mean that IMB intends to have about a 100 per year net increase annually for the coming half decade.
And, how’s your Lottie Moon offering going? This would be a good year to set a new record.
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Ideally, we would celebrate any positive SBC news. I found that the data showing 5 of the top 10 sending churches to be in a small geographic area, proximate to SEBTS to be an interesting fact. Such doesn’t diminish the other six seminaries.
William, thanks for this encouraging post. Dr. Danny Akin has made Southeastern Seminary a “missionary seminary.” To be fair, SEBTS developed a strong missions program under the leadership of Dr. Patterson, but Danny Akin has taken this missions emphasis to a higher level. As a long-time missionary and missions professor, I’m often asked which seminary has the strongest missions program. I always answer that Southeastern does. The other seminaries have good programs, but SEBTS does the best. When I was headed to seminary in 1972, Southwestern Seminary produced 55% of the missionaries appointed by the Foreign Mission Board (now IMB). So, in that era SWBTS was the champion missionary producer, but now that honor goes to SEBTS.
William,
Those churches are to be commended. I assume by sending, it is meant number of missionaries under appointment by the IMB who were members of those churches at the time of appointment. There is financial means to appointment missionaries for positions that are currently not being met. I hope the goals mentioned are met and maybe exceeded.
Mark, I am not sure I would attribute the strong missions program to the leadership of Paige Patterson. It was under the leadership of Patterson and Keith Eitel in 2003 that the IMB was forced to release the following statement regarding actions at SEBTS toward the IMB saying, “disrespect for leadership and policies is being nurtured, non-biblical subversive behavior is encouraged and blatant disregard for truth is propagated.”
When I was appointed in 1978, it was still true 50% or more of the FMB/IMB missionaries were from SWBTS. I think that continued through the 80s and maybe into the 90s because of theologically conservative leadership with an emphasis on missions and evangelism. Besides the obvious reason of a huge decrease in enrollment, it would be interesting to explore other reasons for the decrease in missionaries from SWBTS.
During Dr. Patterson’s presidency at SEBTS, Dr. Keith Eitel developed the two-plus-two (two years at seminary and two years overseas) program, which attracted a lot of students. Also, SEBTS established its Great Commission Center. It is true that later there was considerable tension between Drs. Patterson and Eitel and Jerry Rankin, the President of the IMB. I should add that all the other seminaries established two-plus-two programs, as well.
I did notice some years ago that Mid-America Seminary, during Dr. Grey Allison’s long tenure, had been a very consistent preparer/sender of a large # of our FMB/IMB missionaries. This seemed to be particularly strong in the 1990s and 2000s. I realize that MABTS is in a unique (independent) relationship with/to the SBC, but the missionary heart of that institution made an impression on me at the time.
In the twice weekly chapels, besides regular worship and preaching, SEBTS always takes a moment to spotlight either a current mission or church plant or to promote a missions opportunity for students. It’s no surprise that these churches are regularly mentioned in these spotlights, because they have over time with persistence built their missions and sending cultures. Some of them were building their culture before Dr. Akin became president and some after (Imago Dei didn’t exist until Tony Merida was recruited to teach preaching at SEBTS alongside Akin) but Dr. Akin should receive a lot of credit for putting his school on the map as where you want to go to be sent.
Allen, thanks for the shout out on behalf of Mid-America Baptist Seminary. When we retired from the IMB in 2013, Mid-America invited me to join their faculty to teach missions. I soon learned that Mid-America has three emphases: Bible, evangelism, and missions. Those three values are inculcated in its students. Mid-America will not see as many students appointed as Southeastern because it is considerably smaller. Still, NAMB and IMB leaders value graduates of MABTS. Those leaders tell me that the MABTS graduates know what to do when they arrive on the field. They know how to win folks to Christ.
I think we can also remember the contribution that our state sponsored Baptist colleges make to the IMB. When I was appointed in 1978, Arkansas’ Ouachita Baptist University had the largest number of appointees of any college, non-Baptist or Baptist despite an enrollment of only 1,500. Through the years they have remained near the top of all colleges. I am told but I would have to verify that Ouachita is in the top 2 or 3 of all colleges for number of missionaries under appointment. I think Oklahoma Baptist is up there too. Both are known as OBU and are much smaller than some of the larger Baptist universities.
I meant to add I am a graduate of Ouachita in case your couldn’t guess.
Yes, both OBUs emphasize missions. A tip of the missiological cap is due to both. Also, I was delighted to learn that the IMB intends to re-enlarge the missionary force. Paul Chitwood is doing a great job.